Aldo KOs Gamburyan, Retains WEC Crown

The distance between World Extreme Cagefighting featherweight
champion Jose Aldo and
the rest of the 145-pound division may be wider than first
thought.

Patient and precise, Aldo stopped top contender Manny
Gamburyan on second-round punches in the WEC
51 “Aldo vs. Gamburyan” headliner on Thursday at the 1stBank
Center in Broomfield, Colo. Gamburyan succumbed to strikes 92
seconds into round two, as he experienced defeat for the first time
in four WEC appearances.

“When I came back in the second round, I just put all the work I’d
been doing in the gym into the cage,” Aldo said, “and I was able to
knock him out.”

Aldo -- who survived an early glancing encounter with a Gamburyan
right hand -- attacked his foe with a series of leg kicks in the
first round, as he softened “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 5
finalist for what was to come. He clipped Gamburyan with a straight
right hand in the second, sensed he was hurt and approached for the
finish. As Gamburyan dropped for a defensive single-leg takedown,
the Nova Uniao standout cracked him with a grazing uppercut,
wheeled around behind him and unleashed a furious stream of punches
that left Gamburyan facedown and unconscious.

A winner in 11 consecutive bouts, the 24-year-old Aldo appears to
have no equal in the featherweight division.

“If it’s up to me,” Aldo said, “my reign will last forever.”

Cerrone Tops Varner in Rematch

Donald
Cerrone came out as the aggressor and never took his foot off
the gas.

A multi-pronged attack that featured a variety of strikes and
multiple takedowns drove Cerrone to a unanimous decision victory
over arch rival Jamie Varner
in the co-main event. All three judges scored it 30-27 for Cerrone,
who balked at the idea that the two men had buried the hatchet
through bloodshed.

The two men had carried on a heated war of words since their
January 2009 matchup ended in controversy, and it spilled into the
cage. Cerrone overwhelmed the former WEC lightweight champion with
his early aggression, as he had Varner on his heels throughout an
entertaining first round. Twice he buckled Varner, first with a
blistering knee and later with a straight left hand.

In round two, Cerrone attacked Varner high and low. Leg kicks took
their toll on the Arizona Combat Sports standout, as he succumbed
to another Cerrone takedown 3:20 into the period. By the end of the
round, Cerrone was up on the scorecards, and Varner was bleeding
from his mouth and nose and from multiple cuts on his forehead.

Varner landed a pair of crackling right hands midway through the
third round, but Cerrone barely flinched. Later in the round, the
Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts representative scored with another
takedown and hammered away at Varner with short elbows inside the
guard.

“Donald’s a tough dude,” Varner said. “I put up a good fight. He
mixed it up. My hat’s off to him. Donald beat me.”

Torres Submits Valencia

File Photo

Torres shined at WEC
51.

Former WEC bantamweight champion Miguel
Torres put the brakes on a two-fight losing streak, as he
submitted Charlie
Valencia with a second-round rear-naked choke. Valencia,
finished for the first time in more than two years, met his demise
2:25 into round two.

Blessed with a six-inch height and 11-inch reach advantage, Torres
punctuated a relatively uneventful first round with a flurry, as he
capitalized on a slip from Valencia. He swarmed the former King of
the Cage titleholder with ground-and-pound in the closing seconds.
In round two, Torres finished what he started. The 29-year-old
Carlson Gracie protégé clipped Valencia with a right hand, followed
with a head kick and forced a ground battle. Ultimately, he took
Valencia’s back, secured a body triangle and, after a brief
struggle, cinched the choke.

Torres, who now trains at the same Tristar Gym that houses UFC
welterweight king Georges
St. Pierre, returned to the winner’s circle for the first time
since his memorable five-round duel with Takeya
Mizugaki in April 2009.

Roop KOs ‘The Korean Zombie’

“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 semi-finalist George Roop
knocked out Chan Sung
Jung with a well-timed head kick in a featured featherweight
matchup. The shocking and brutal end came 90 seconds into round
two.

A former two-division Rage in the Cage champion, Roop controlled
round one against the Korean Top Team ace, as he kept Jung at a
safe distance with leg and body kicks, stiff jabs and accurate
punches. In the second round, Jung, his hands held dangerously low,
walked into a three-strike combination, the last piece of which
left him flat on his back and unconscious. The kick landed behind
Jung’s right ear and dropped him where he stood.

“I’m a long fighter,” Roop said. “I knew he was going to come in
real aggressive. I thought my precision striking would win the
fight. I’m really glad I got the opportunity to showcase my skills
here.”

Hominick Picks Apart Garcia, Earns Split
Nod

Carried by a jackhammer jab, accurate power punches to the head and
body and symphonic footwork, Canadian standout Mark
Hominick defeated one-time featherweight title contender
Leonard
Garcia by split decision in a featured matchup at 145 pounds.
Scores were 29-28 from all three judges, two of whom sided with
Hominick.

Present throughout the 15-minute encounter, Hominick’s left jab
made a mess of Garcia’s face by fight’s end. The 28-year-old
Shawn
Tompkins protégé controlled the cage and backed up his foe with
well-time strikes, as the tactician brought the fight to the
brawler. As has been his tendency, Garcia fired away with
high-risk, high-reward punches, most of which were either blocked
or missed their intended target.

“We know Leonard has a big right hand,” said Hominick, Thamesford,
Ontario, Canada, native who has rattled off four consecutive
victories. “We wanted to make him miss, and we wanted to make him
pay for missing. That was the game plan. He’s very durable; he’s
very tough, so he’s hard to finish.”